Virtual Schools Across America: Trends in K-12 Online Education, 2002
Responding to the need for alternative education, virtual schools are
multiplying rapidly across the nation. Many states have taken the lead with
virtual school initiatives or are sponsoring virtual schools through various
funding sources. The Internet has provided an opportunity for innovative, new,
and creative solutions for educating students. It is especially adaptable to
personal education. This unique report gives you the leading edge on understanding
the development and progress of virtual schools, a new and quickly emerging
aspect of the K-12 education market.
Respond by Friday March 29 for a special pre-publication discount–See attached
order form for details.
The Peak Group has conducted surveys and primary research on virtual schools
as well as a series of interviews with the leading virtual schools in the nation
to provide you first hand insight that explores important topics such as:
What are virtual schools and how do they operate?
The report takes an in-depth look at virtual schools operating across America
today and presents a complete description, background and development history
of virtual schools. The report explores how virtual schools are organized and
managed to give you an informative overview on virtual schools.
How are virtual schools growing and are they capable of meeting increasing
and various enrollment demands?
Virtual schools are proliferating across the country and their enrollment reflects
a wide variety of learners. The report outlines the current state of virtual
schools and presents growth projections furnished by existing virtual schools.
The report also takes a look at emerging trends on online K-12 education such
as the Internet 2 K-20 initiative.
What is the scope of services offered by virtual schools?
Today, virtual schools offer a wide variety of services including a full curriculum
of courses. Based upon an extensive survey of some of the largest virtual schools,
the report furnishes detailed information about the full scope of content, curriculum
and non-curricular services offered by virtual schools and how these services
are either acquired or developed.
Who attends virtual schools and what are the enrollment demographics?
Virtual schools can be public or private, district-wide, statewide, and national
as well as international in their reach. Learn about student profiles and the
audiences targeted by virtual schools. Understand the enrollment characteristics
of virtual schools and the enrollment projections they anticipate over the next
2-3 years.
Do you know how to sell to schools in cyberspace?
Find out everything you need to know about the budget and purchasing cycle of
virtual schools as well as their general purchasing characteristics. Discover
how products are evaluated, what they buy, who are the decision-makers, and
who they buy from. Analysis and data collected from virtual schools surveys
reveal information about purchasing budgets and how much they plan to spend
for digital content and curriculum, traditional content and curriculum, hardware,
management systems and more.
How are virtual schools funded and what does their revenue sources or operating
model look like?
Not unlike traditional schools, virtual schools receive funding and financial
support from a variety of sources. However, very different from traditional
public schools, they generate revenue from their sales and marketing efforts.
Find out information about current funding and revenue sources and how virtual
schools see this mix changing over the next 2-3 years.
How do virtual schools manage assessment and student supervision?
Virtual schools are under the same pressure and requirements to improve educational
outcomes as traditional schools. Learn about the policies virtual schools have
for testing and providing individualized help for students. The report also
explores the systems virtual schools have in place for mentoring and/or supervising
students.
What type of strategic partnerships are virtual schools seeking?
Virtual schools are organized and run in a variety of ways: at the state-level,
through a college or university, public school district, charter school, regional
consortium or privately. The report will examine any patterns between the different
types of virtual school organizations and their current strategic partnerships
and what they are seeking.
Who are the "Model Virtual Schools"?
The Peak Group has selected model virtual schools to highlight successful characteristics
and components of a virtual school. These selected virtual schools share key
insights about the lessons they have learned over the last few years. Highlights
include anecdotal material about what is working and why as well as a review
of what they tried that did not work and why. These leading virtual schools
share their enlightening perception of areas of growth and opportunity as well
as their perspective on obstacles to success.
The Peak Group Signature Database
In addition to providing detailed information and informative analysis about
virtual schools, the report contains a comprehensive database of detailed profiles
of the nations leading virtual schools. This profile database catalogs the key
contacts and important characteristics about each virtual school.
Contact:
John Politoski
Managing Partner
The Peak Group, LLC
Tel: 408-927-5879
Fax: 408-927-7425
